Rebuilding our economy around the middle class

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Stimulus spending will spur economic growth in the short-term. Restructuring the tax code and optimizing government will resolve our long-term deficit issues. Whether by bailing out overextended banks, propping up bad businesses, or spending blood and treasure at war, most of us have been asked to sacrifice. It would be unseemly in the face of so much shared suffering for the wealthiest among us to refuse to shoulder their share of the burden. Continue Reading

Taking care of business?

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UPDATED: Recently, a local building association official advocated for electing “business friendly” politicians. But we as a community have different, more dynamic priorities than does an industry representative. Healthy communities are more than housing developments and market shares. Continue Reading

Happy (fiscal) New Year!

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We the people have spoken. We want a balanced budget without cuts to services or tax increases. It’s clear that the public doesn’t know what it wants and knows even less how to get there. That’s where our leaders come in. We need them to lead. Continue Reading

Lifeguards wanted: regulator as hero

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When I think of “sexy” professions, regulators seem nestled snugly between port-a-potty cleaner and roadkill removers. Compare this stereotype to other public servants like doctors, nurses, firemen, police officers and soldiers. Teachers are called noble. District attorneys and public defenders are considered crusaders for justice. What about the humble regulators? They get called bureaucrats and busybodies. Rather than writing new regulations, we need to change the way that we think and talk about the regulators themselves. Continue Reading

I might be wrong… and you might be too

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We’ve got problems (globally, nationally, and locally) and we need all hands on deck to get this right. We need to be able to work together and learn to admit when we’re wrong so that we can get down to the hard yards of moving forward. Of course, I could be wrong… Continue Reading